{"id":3283,"date":"2020-07-08T12:09:44","date_gmt":"2020-07-08T17:09:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/abound.college\/gradschool\/?post_type=advice&p=3283"},"modified":"2023-04-24T14:34:31","modified_gmt":"2023-04-24T19:34:31","slug":"my-graduate-program-search-why-i-chose-an-online-education","status":"publish","type":"advice","link":"https:\/\/abound.college\/gradschool\/advice\/my-graduate-program-search-why-i-chose-an-online-education\/","title":{"rendered":"My Graduate Program Search: Why I Chose an Online Education"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two years ago, my friends and I finished our undergraduate studies. We all chose different post-grad paths, some working full-time and others continuing on to grad school. Out of all of my friends, I was the only one who decided to do both. Many of my friends were surprised when I told them that I was going to work a full-time job while returning to school. Especially among my age group, it\u2019s more common for students to be a full-time graduate student and only begin their careers <\/span>after<\/span><\/i> graduation. <\/span>In fact, it has remained a consistent trend for more graduate students to enroll in full-time studies than to take part-time classes while maintaining a full-time job<\/span><\/a>. I knew that it would be difficult to balance, but I believed that I could benefit from both experiences.<\/span><\/p>\n

Deciding to pursue graduate school while working a full-time job was not something I jumped into right away. I spent time deliberating the <\/span>pros and cons<\/a><\/strong> and whether this was something that I would be able to handle. I began working soon after I graduated and, after a year, I felt confident enough to start <\/span>applying to grad school<\/strong><\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Once I began searching for the best graduate programs<\/a>, I knew that one important factor to consider was flexibility. I wanted to pursue a quality education, but I also didn\u2019t want it to detriment my current responsibilities. As a person who works during the day, I knew that my options were limited to <\/span>weekend, evening, or online classes<\/a><\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n

I began to narrow down my choices. I knew that I wanted to stay local and attend a <\/span>college in Texas<\/a><\/strong>, because in-state tuition was a more affordable option. I wanted to strengthen my current career path, so I made sure to search for colleges that offered <\/span>MBA programs<\/a><\/strong> with a specialization in marketing. Surprisingly, that shrank my options to a small list of schools.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Next, I looked at accessibility. A majority of the schools that offered the program I wanted were located outside of my city. This meant that I had three options: Drive out of town to take on-campus courses, move to another city, or take online classes. Choosing to work full-time and study part-time meant that I wanted to keep my job while going back to school. Out of the three options, there was only one that gave me the flexibility to do so. As a result, I decided to apply to <\/span>online programs<\/a><\/strong>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

My final step was looking at schools that offered affordability and advancement. Which colleges offer a price that worked with my budget, all while giving me the quality education that I wanted? When it came to my college search, I knew that these two factors came hand-in-hand. The <\/span>net price<\/strong><\/span> of school is the combined price of tuition, <\/span>books<\/a><\/strong>, and other college expenses minus the amount offered through FAFSA and other means of <\/span>financial aid<\/a><\/strong>. The breadth of academic offerings include all of a school\u2019s programs, classroom experiences, and resources. And when you combine both the net price and academic offerings, you discover <\/span>value<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"It was esse<\/span>ntial for me to understand what I was getting in return for the money that I was putting in. Simply judging a college based off of its price is a common mistake that many potential students make. If you mark out schools that may seem too expensive, you may miss out on a few quality programs. Likewise, choosing a school with cheap tuition doesn\u2019t always promise you the academic experience that you want. It\u2019s important to find a balance, one that fits within your price range while giving you everything you need to excel in your career. One easy way to understand whether a college can offer you a quality education is by looking at its accreditation. The schools verified to help students excel are those recognized through regional and\/or national accreditations<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

After much time and deliberation, I narrowed down my college list to a handful of schools and began applying. In the end, I chose to study at Texas A&M University-Central Texas. I\u2019m now about to finish my first semester of college courses, and I do not regret my decision at all. All of the faculty and staff I\u2019ve talked to during my <\/span>application process<\/a><\/strong> and courses were very friendly and helpful. I have loved learning the course material, and I even find myself more immersed in my studies than in my undergraduate years. Although it can be stressful at times to have a lot of things on my plate, I know that it\u2019ll all be worth it in the end.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

More About Abound:<\/b> We\u2019re here to help. <\/span>Abound: Grad School<\/b><\/a> can help get you in touch with schools that we can confirm are <\/span>Accessible, Affordable, Accelerated, and Advanced<\/b><\/a>. <\/span>Take a look at the <\/span>schools<\/b><\/a> we trust and find the program that works for you.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Choosing to work full-time and study part-time meant that I wanted to keep my job while going back to school. Out of my available options, there was only one that gave me the flexibility to do so: online programs.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":3287,"template":"","class_list":["post-3283","advice","type-advice","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","abound_advice_topics-thinking-about-grad-school","abound_advice_topics-balancing-work-school","abound_advice_topics-online-degree","abound_advice_topics-affordability","abound_advice_topics-flexible-scheduling","abound_advice_topics-right-program"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMy Graduate Program Search: Why I Chose an Online Education - Abound: Grad School<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If you want to pursue a quality education but don't want to detriment your current responsibilities, an online education could be right for you.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/abound.college\/gradschool\/advice\/my-graduate-program-search-why-i-chose-an-online-education\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"My Graduate Program Search: Why I Chose an Online Education\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"If you want to pursue a quality education but don't want to detriment your current responsibilities, an online education could be right for you.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/abound.college\/gradschool\/advice\/my-graduate-program-search-why-i-chose-an-online-education\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Abound: Grad School\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-04-24T19:34:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/abound.college\/gradschool\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/07\/pexels-photo-4050296.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1880\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1253\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/abound.college\\\/gradschool\\\/advice\\\/my-graduate-program-search-why-i-chose-an-online-education\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/abound.college\\\/gradschool\\\/advice\\\/my-graduate-program-search-why-i-chose-an-online-education\\\/\",\"name\":\"My Graduate Program Search: Why I Chose an Online Education - 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